I’ve never been one for borrowing books from the library. Admittedly, the major reason could be my complete inability to ever return a book on time. But, that’s not exactly it. I’ve never been one for borrowing books from the library for the same reason I’ve never been one for used bookstores: I like the feel of a brand new book. I like knowing that I am the first one to crack it open. The first one to fold down the pages to mark my place. The one to make those creases in the bind. The one whose handwriting lines the margins where I had to note an exceptionally beautiful line. But as I’ve ventured into the writing world, I’ve become an even bigger proponent of buying my books new because that’s the best way to support the writers I love. (more…)

Even though I’m still wallowing in the middle of my own personal wasteland, AKA draft #2, I’ve started to pay attention to the business side of publishing. Yes, I have a ways to go before I need to face it head on with my own work, but the fact is, I find the publishing industry fascinating, so I don’t mind learning all the intricacies of the process, from writing to publication.

The bleakness of the publishing industry is a constant theme these days. I even touched on it in my post/rant yesterday on the state of journalism. And I’ve heard and read over and over again that literary fiction doesn’t sell. You would think that would make me reconsider my work-in-progress, but the fact is, I’m not writing for publication nor am I catering my writing to what sells. I am writing this story, which falls into the category of literary fiction, because it is the story I want to tell. It is also a story I would like to read. That has always been my foremost priority, writing a book I like. If someone else should ever like it as much as I do, well, great. But as I slog away at draft #2 that’s not my focus and it’s not what keeps me motivated on those days I just want to be done with it and chuck the whole damn thing. (more…)

I graduated from college with a journalism degree over a decade ago. (Wow, I just made myself feel old.) Admittedly, I ended up with a journalism degree because I couldn’t do an English degree and graduate in 4-years with a double major in International Relations. Now, years later, I realize that the English degree would have been better suited for me. But at the time, I was more focused on having a writing background in general, and having loved writing for my high school newspaper I thought a journalism degree would be a good fit. About a year before graduation, I realized I didn’t want a career in journalism, but I still completed my journalism degree. I chose to let my International Relations degree lead me down a different path, and for a while that path worked.

In recent years, I’ve found myself relying more on my Journalism degree to carve out a life and career that I enjoy. It turns out it was the better fit for me than the IR degree ever was. Now, I am incredibly thankful that I have it because I know it gave me a great foundation, even if it is a little rusty, for the work I am pursuing.

One of the realities of career in journalism, or writing in general, is that it is incredibly difficult field to break into or to even stay in these days. Yes, freelance gigs can be found, but a full-time staff position at a newspaper is a much bleaker prospect. Today, Gawker.com posted an AP article on a recent survey of newspaper editors which only served to reiterate the grim picture in the newspaper industry these days: (more…)

The other day I took the plunge and bought the domain name of my name. (I bought the name for this blog as well & am currently working on getting it linked up. Just going to take a few days to get someone to do it for me. My tech skills are questionable at best.)

Anyways, I bought my domain name because I’m thinking positively. Whether I end up using it to market my eventual “novel” or just for the work writing I do (& those freelance articles brewing in my head), I decided it was a good step to take. Also, I figured it was about time I make it mine as there is someone else out there with my name.

One day I was googling my name and came across an article in my college newspaper written by “me.” At least the attribution line said it was written by me. While I did write a couple articles for my college paper, this was not one of them. I soon realized that not only was there someone else out there with my name–with the exact same spelling, but she also went to the same college I did (although a few years after me) & was a writer (well, at least for the college newspaper. I haven’t come across anything else she’s done since then). Luckily I was the first one to lay claim to “our” domain name. I hate sharing.

I went for first+last name. Easy enough. I thought about first initial+last name, but that was taken (by some silversmiths). I also gave some thought to using my middle initial as I did when I wrote in college, but decided that I wanted to keep it simple. True, if I ever get the site up & running, some people might mistake the two of us, but I’ll take my chances.